Rings
by Chinagirl18
Summary: While Olivia's on another case, the detectives at Special Victims come upon a serial killer who marries women, then kills them and takes their wedding rings. But will the detectives catch the killer before he gets to someone close? Eventually E/O...ON HOLD.
1. Cry, Baby, Cry

**This is my newest story that I've been working on. I hope readers like it. I already have about 8 chapters written. I just have to type them, but I won't post them if I don't get reviews. Please R&R!**

**Disclaimer: Dick Wolf owns everything. Not me.**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 1: Cry, Baby, Cry

"Come on, baby," the babysitter whined. "Please, oh please go to sleep. I'm really tired and I need my rest, too."

The baby kept crying. The babysitter felt like crying herself, but when she heard a scream, she was startled awake. "God, they need to turn their TV off. Some people are trying to sleep here, including a very stubborn baby." She sighed, giving up all hope on sleep that night. She was going to be cranky the next day. Maybe she could at least get the television volume down a bit. Then she might have a chance of sleeping for a couple of minutes.

She cradled the crying baby a little more until he was soon only sniffling. "Okay, baby," the babysitter said, walking over to the crib. "I'll be back in a sec. Maybe you'll be able to sleep then."

She gently set the baby in his crib and covered him with his Elmo blankets. She left the bedroom and quietly slipped out the apartment door into the open hallway.

"Now, where is that noisy television?" Right then, a shower started running. "Really? A shower at 1:23 in the morning? That's just ridiculous." She slowly wandered down the hallway, occasionally stopping and putting an ear to the wall, listening for the water source. "Oh, god. I'm eavesdropping. Oh, god! Why do I keep talking to myself?" The water stopped. "Drat," the babysitter said. "Wait, there's no TV! Finally!"

Just when she turned around, a man came racing out of the room in front of her. He bumped into her as he rushed by. She could smell a bit of cologne, and she caught a glance at something small and shiny on the inside of his coat. It was circular with a hole through it.

"What is that? A ring?"

The babysitter then caught a whiff of something strong and pungent. Something that smelled thick and watery at the same time. She peeked inside the room with its door now wide open. She slowly and warily stepped into the room. Then she spotted something bright red. Blood.

"Oh my god," she said, shocked.

She followed the drops of blood into a small room with a bed. Everything was neat and tidy. Except for the dead body, exposed, halfway under the blankets.

"Oh god!" she exclaimed. She looked around the room, frantically looking for the closest phone. The nearest one was in the main living room. She hurried over, grabbed it, and called 911. As she waited for someone to answer, she could hear the baby starting to cry again. He was upset.

"Cry, baby, cry. Believe me. I get it."

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Sorry this was so short, but this was kind of the previews part in the episodes. Please review! The more reviews I get, the faster the chapters go up!**

**-Chinagirl18**


	2. Up Close and Personal

**Hey guys! I'd like to thank every single one of the people who reviewed/favorited/alerted my story! Thank you so much! I decided to put up another chapter right now, since this is probably going to be one of the only times I will be able to. I hope you enjoy this chapter as you did the last!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything. Dick Wolf owns everything that I did make up. (P.S. Thank you to the person (you know who you are) who said I should have a battle with Dick over custody rights. Thank you ever so much!) 33**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 2: Up Close and Personal

"Elizabeth Ruthman. Forty-two years old. She was strangled manually from the front," Ruben Morales said.

"Up close and personal," Elliot stated.

"Yep," Morales replied. "Her genitals are a little swollen, indicated some abuse. The neighbor, Lisa Lauren, said she heard a scream." Morales led Elliot over to the busied woman with a baby in her arms.

"Hello. I'm Detective Elliot Stabler. Could you please describe the events that you witnessed after you heard the scream?"

"Yeah, yeah. Sure," she stuttered, trying to keep her mind on the same track and keep the baby quiet so she could talk. "So, I heard someone scream and I thought it was a loud TV set that had been left on. I was trying to get the baby to sleep, so I went to go try to ask the person if he could turn down the volume. I put the baby in the crib and when I left the room, I heard water flowing. I think someone was taking a shower or had just relieved themselves. When the water turned off, I didn't hear the TV anymore, so I started to turn back." Lisa patted the back of the baby lightly, while bouncing up and down, up and down. The baby had started sniffling again. "Oh no, baby. Not yet. Don't cry. Just wait a little longer, and then you can sleep."

"And what happened when you were going back to your apartment?" Elliot asked with his notepad already filled with details. He turned the page.

"Well, actually, my apartment is on the next floor up. Calin's parents are eating dinner at Sunny Italy tonight."

"Is there any distinguishing characteristics you remember about this man?" Elliot asked.

"Uh, I couldn't really see his face, but I know he smelled like some kind of cologne. He was about…I don't know…around six feet, six feet two…something like that. He was white, but that's only because I saw a really quick glimpse of his wrist. He was wearing gloves."

"Explains why there's no fingerprint on her neck," Morales said.

"Wait, did you say you heard water running?"

"Yeah."

"Did it sound like a shower or a sink running?"

"Uh, I guess it sounded most like a sink? Why?" Lisa asked, curious.

"Damn it," Morales said to himself. "I told them to check the shower, bathtub, and the toilet. Not the sink. Why would I not tell them that? It's standard procedure." Morales silently scolded himself and left for the bathroom.

Elliot turned to Lisa. "Is there anything else about this man that was different, or out of the ordinary?"

"Yeah, actually. When he bumped into me, I saw something shiny. It was round and it looked like it had a hole in the middle. I thought it was ring or something?"

Elliot paused. "Just a moment," he said.

He walked over to where the covered body lied. He lifted up the end of the tarp to reveal her left hand. He looked at her ring finger. There was a clear line that showed the outline of a wedding ring. She had been married.

"Sir!" Elliot called to another officer. "Could you and others please start searching for anything that would indicate that a married person lived here?"

"Yeah. We'll get right on that," the officer said, calling over others to help him.

"Thank you." Elliot walked back over to Lisa Lauren, who was watching attentively. "Do you know who lived here?"

"No. I don't really know my neighbors too well. I only know the Princetons."

"Do you have any clue if the people who lived here were married?" Elliot asked. He needed more answers.

"No. I don't. I'm sorry. I wish I had more to say. I wish I could help you out more."

"Thank you very much for all that you've given," Elliot said, nodding to Lisa.

"Is it okay if I go back to my room? We still need to get some sleep, and we won't get any with all this going on. No offense," Lisa said politely.

"Yes, you may leave," Elliot said. "If we need to get in touch with you again, would you mind telling me yours room number?"

"Sure. Room 117, third floor."

"Alright. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Lisa said. She then lifted Calin a little higher on her shoulder and walked out.  
"Elliot!" Morales called from the bathroom. "Come check this out!"

Elliot walked into the bathroom to meet Morales and some of his other buddies. Morales was kneeling under the sink. Elliot asked, "What?"

"There's a fingerprint. Probably of the killer's. He probably washed the ring before he left. That was probably what the neighbor heard."

"Thanks," Elliot said. "When you get the print, send it to the lab. If this guy was wearing gloves, he knew what he was doing and had probably done it before. Hopefully, he'll be in the system already."

"Detective!" someone called from the bedroom. "Look at this!"

Elliot walked briskly over to where the man was standing, holding a pile of papers. He fingered through them. From the bottom up were marriage papers, electricity bills, water bills, hotel bills, more electricity bills and water bills, car bills, taxes, another hotel bill, and a house bill. But most importantly, at the very top were divorce papers.

"They weren't just up close and personal," Elliot stated. "They were getting divorced."

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Okay. That was the second chapter to Rings. I hope you enjoyed it. **

**Please please review! It will tell me what readers want, like and don't like, and I can fix it if it doesn't create unintended problems in the story. **

**Again, please review!**

**-Chinagirl18**


	3. Multi Husband

**Hey everyone! I hope everyone is having a great holiday break so far! Christmas is so near! 2010 is so near! Get ready! 1 year until the first decade of 2000 will be complete!**

**So this is the third chapter of Rings. Sorry it's kind of short. Most of my chapters will be kind of short, but I am hoping to have a number of chapters in the story. Please R & R! **

**Disclaimer: Not mine. **

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 3: Multi-Husband

"Victim is Elizabeth Michael. Looks like she's only been married for a couple months. Something in their marriage must have gone wrong from the start," Elliot said looking at the files sitting on his desk.

"So who was it?" Fin asked. "Wife or husband?"

Everyone shrugged.

"Search for Elizabeth Ruthman and husband," Fin told Munch.

"On it." He turned around and started typing. Within a couple seconds, a name popped up. "Randy Ruthman," Munch said.

"Anything on him?" Cragen asked.

"Hm," Munch said, sifting through Randy Ruthman's profile. "Not recently. Looked like he was a good man."

"Then why were they getting' divorced?" Fin asked, confused.

"We don't know yet," Elliot said. "We'll have to get the blood test results back to find out more."

As if on cue, the phone rang. Elliot answered. "Detective Stabler, Special Victims Unit."

He heard Melinda on the other end. "We got the blood results. You can come down any time."

"We'll be right there," Elliot said. "Thanks." He hung up the phone and turned to his coworkers and captain. "Melinda has the results. I'm going to head down. Anyone want to come with?"

Fin stood up. "I'll meet you there."

"Okay." Elliot walked out the doors. _Maybe I should tell Liv_, he thought. _I could fill her in on the details. … Maybe not. Liv's busy with another case. Probably shouldn't put all that weight on her shoulders since it is our case to handle, not hers._

**RINGS**

Elliot walked into the M.E.'s room to find the body of Elizabeth Michael on the examination table and Melinda looking at the blood results, making sure she did everything correctly.

"Hey," Elliot said. "So what are the details about the blood found on the sink?"

"Well, Elizabeth definitely had a sexual relationship with this man. His blood matches the semen in her body." She paused. "What's his name?"

"Randy Ruthman," Elliot answered.

"Huh. Interesting. The DNA belongs to someone else."

This little unexpected piece of information got Elliot's interest.

Fin walked in just then. "What did I miss?" he asked.

Melinda answered, "The blood sample's DNA matches the semen found in Elizabeth, but his name isn't Randy Ruthman."

"Then who is it?"

"A guy named Tim Sanders."

Elliot sighed impatiently. "Damn it. More research ahead."

"Yeah," Fin said as they left. "Thanks for the help Melinda."

"Anytime." She smiled as she continued on her work.

**RINGS**

Elliot, Fin, and Munch were all on their computers again, searching for a man named Tim Sanders. After a couple of grunts and sighs from each, Fin finally found something.

"Tim Sanders," he said. "Caucasian. Same as his supposedly other self. Lived in Illinois. Married Emily Henderson and moved back here to New York. Got a job as an accountant. They made a lot of money. Emily Henderson was murdered two years later. Tim disappeared."

"So," Munch said, "you're saying that this serial killer was planning for his next wedding when he got his job as an accountant?"

"That's what it looks like," Fin returned.

"He must have known what he was doing by then," Elliot said. "He knew what to do and what not to do. That takes practice and experience."

"Hold on," Fin said, looking at his computer screen again. "It says that Emily was murdered in her own house, with no evidence indicating who her killer was _except_ that she was strangled by a pair of hands and her ring finger indicated that she had had a wedding ring."

"That sounds like our guy," Elliot said, sighing.

"Damn," Fin said. "Who wants to guess how many wives he's killed and how many rings he has in his sick golden-ring stash?"

"Well, one thing I am sure of." Munch stood up, ready to finish the day. "He's been married many more times than should legally allowed. That equals two words: Multi-Husband."

"Check that," Cragen said, walking out of his office. "Deranged, crazy, psycho Multi-Husband."

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**(music starts) 'Tis the third chapter of Ri-ings. I love SVU, oh, yes I do. (music ends) LOL. **

**Please review! Remember, the more reviews, the more chapters! Thank you!**

**Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!**

**-Chinagirl18**


	4. Case Stress Part 1

**Hey guys! This is one time that I will be un-busy and decided to put up a chapter. **

**Sorry this is a really short one, and if you want to put this chapter into the the "filler" category, go ahead and do so. 'Cause I kind of made it to be that.**

**Enjoy everyone and please R & R! :D**

**Disclaimer: Yeppers, not mine. I 3 them though. ;D**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 4: Case Stress Part 1

Elliot walked into his and Kathy's bedroom, exposing his highly attractive abs.

"Hey, El. How was work today?" Kathy asked. She was already in bed.

"Rough," Elliot replied. "How about the kids?"

"Well, someone was being mean to Eli today at school."

"What?!" Elliot exclaimed, immediately angered that someone would try to hurt his boy. "Who?!"

"Now, El, calm down. Eli's fine. He isn't hurt. But he told the boy who was being mean to him that his dad was a police officer and he could put him in jail if he was being mean to him. And at this boy's age, he had told the teacher about this. I was called in for a meeting. Eli can't talk about this at school when's he's older or he's going to get something worse than a tattle-tale."

"Alright," Elliot said. "I'll talk to him tomorrow." Elliot paused. Should he tell Kathy about the psycho Multi-Husband? Did he want her to be worried? "Kathy," Elliot said hesitantly.

"Yeah, El?" Kathy looked at him curiously.

"I know I'm hard sometimes. With you and the kids. But please don't get married to someone else while I'm on this case, or while the case is still open."

"Why?" Kathy asked. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah...no...just...be careful, okay?"

"Sure Elliot. I will." Kathy switched off her bedside lamp. "Good night, El," she said as she got comfortable under the sheets.

"Night, Kath." Elliot lied down in the bed on his side, so that he was facing out, away from Kathy. He wondered how Olivia was. _She's probably better than I am right now_, he thought.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Again, sorry this is so short. I was having a writer's block when I was writing this.**

**Please review! It puts smiles on my face!**

**Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah (did I spell that right?), Merry Kwanzaa (""), and Happy Holidays to everyone! Peace to all, and to all a good night. ;)**

**-Chinagirl18**


	5. Case Stress Part 2

**Hello there, readers! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas holiday! It's almost 2010! Wow! The year went so fast!**

**Okay, sorry that this chapter is so short, too. This was another filler. Sorry! Hope you read and enjoy it all the same!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing of SVU. I would wish upon a star, and the best I get is that I'm allowed to use them in a story. Oh well. Everything belongs to Dick Wolf.**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 5: Case Stress Part 2

Olivia sat by her apartment window with a warm blanket around her. She had a hard case to deal with. It's not much different than her other cases, but this just hit a certain nerve in just the wrong place.

"Hi, Mom," Olivia said towards the dark, starry sky. "I'm going through a tough case right now."

She paused, thought to herself.

"A man raped a woman. It turned out she was pregnant. But she found out only when it was too late to get it aborted. She's going to have the baby, Mom. She doesn't know if she wants to keep her baby, or give it up for adoption." Olivia started to cry.

"She didn't have a choice whether to keep her baby or get it aborted. But Mom. You did. Why did you keep me? If you didn't want me, you could have put me up for adoption. Why didn't you? You wouldn't have to look at me every day, a constant reminder that I was a product of your rape. Why did you want yourself to go through with it?"

Olivia stopped, even when her tears did not. She was hoping for an answer. She wanted an answer.

No…she needed it. Someday, somehow.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**There it was! Case Stress Part 2. Again, sorry for the shortness of the chapter. Please review!**

**-Chinagirl18**


	6. Emily Henderson and a New Identity

**Chapter 6 of Rings is here. It's longer. I hope you're happy. ;D**

**Disclaimer: All goes to Dick Wolf and NBC.**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 6: Emily Henderson and a New Identity

"Mrs. Henderson," Fin said, knocking on the front door.

Fin and Elliot were standing on the Hendersons' front porch as cars and passers-by travelled through the neighborhood. Litter was scattered along the ground, while loud neighbors stood outside, looking at the detectives, deciding if they should intimidate the intruders so they would go away.

"Hello? Mrs. Henderson? This is the police."

Elliot cut Fin off. "We want to talk about your daughter, Emily."

The door opened quickly, but only as to show a woman's face peering out the door. "What about Emily? She's not here right now. If you could just leave now…" She started to shut the door, but Elliot put his foot inside the door to stop it.

"Mrs. Henderson, we know that your daughter was murdered."

Mrs. Henderson stopped pushing on the door. She had given up telling other people that Emily was just gone, instead of telling them that she was murdered in her own house.

"Alright," Mrs. Henderson said, looking down. "Come in. I don't want my neighbors to see that there are detectives here. They might ask questions when you're gone."

Elliot and Fin stepped inside. Mrs. Henderson closed the door behind them, locking it. Elliot and Fin looked at each other cautiously, slowly moving their hands to their gun holsters.

Mrs. Henderson turned around and saw them reaching for their guns. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "No need for the guns, gentlemen. I lock my door each time because I don't live in such a safe neighborhood."

The two detectives relaxed, letting their arms fall to their sides.

"Alright," Mrs. Henderson said, shrugging. "What questions do you need answers to?"

"Who married your daughter?"

"A man named Tim Sanders. I hated him, but Emily loved him."

"Do you know what was going on during the first month of their marriage?"

"No. Tim wanted to leave; buy a house, have kids. When they moved, I tried getting a hold of Emily, but it was always Tim who answered the phone and said that his wife wasn't there. I hung up each time."

"Why?"

"Because..." She paused. "Because I was afraid of him to tell the truth. I had a bad feeling about him."

"Do you know what happened when your daughter was killed?"

"I say that Tim Sanders killed her; her own husband! He had even taken her wedding ring with him! Emily had shown me her ring as soon as she received it. It was all gold, with her initials on in. It was beautiful, and she loved it."

"You said it had her initials? Was it her marriage name, or her maiden name?"

"Maiden. E.H. It was in a fancy cursive font. Then, when I heard it was taken when she was killed, I was heartbroken. Emily loved that ring. But I saw it as an ownership kind of gift. Emily belonged to that bad man. Then when she died, I knew I was right about him. I just wish I could have warned her first."

**RINGS**

"Have you ever seen this man?" Munch asked the truck driver who was getting ready to leave with his truckload.

"Yeah, actually," he said, nodding at the familiar face. "He was a good guy. Had his whole life ahead of him."

"What happened?" Munch asked. "Did he leave or something?"

"Yeah. He just disappeared. He had a girlfriend. Sooner than later, he married her. During then, I didn't have much contact with him. Then suddenly, he just left," the driver said, shrugging. "Didn't say anything. No notice. He just left. Sometimes, I think that they moved to L.A. Got tired here. Went to their fantasy land."

"Do you remember his name?"

"Huh?" the driver asked, confused.

"Do you remember his name?"

"Yeah. But…why do you need to hear it from me? If you're already investigating this guy, shouldn't you already know his name?"

Munch was getting impatient. "Look, man. We have something on this guy, but it seems that he has different names each time he attacks. So I'm going to ask again: do you remember his name?"

"Yeah, yeah. Ryan Anderson. At least, that's what he told me his name was."

"Thanks," Munch said, relieved to be done with this guy. He was getting on his nerves.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Have a Happy Happy New Year and get ready for the year of 2010!**

**My blessings to all!**

**-Chinagirl18**

**Click the button below! I dare ya!**


	7. Caught

**Hey y'alls! Firstly, I would like to thank my friend HAS and Pics for telling me (not directly, but they were basically saying it) that my writing was really good. I took that as to not stop writing. I like writing. And this comment made by my two friends made me smile a mile a minute! =D =D =D =D**

**Secondly, I am doing as much work as I can each night on all three of my SVU fanfics. Predator is coming along, Drawn is, too, and well, this is Rings. :]**

**Enjoy it and please R&R!**

**Disclaimer: Me owns nada. Dick Wolfe own everything. NBC, also. **

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 7: Caught

"Ryan Anderson," Elliot said, looking at his files. "Doesn't look like he's been charged for anything. Looks like he was the best guy in the world. Even gave to charities."

"Damn," Fin said from behind his desk. "We got nothin' on him. His friends don't even know if he killed his wife."

"They just think they went off to Neverland," Munch said. "But I doubt _she_ had her 'happily ever after'."

Silence.

Everyone was disgusted at how well this guy covered his tracks. He must have had a lot of experience and practice, which meant there were more victims and grieving families for which the detectives couldn't find the killers.

Cragen came in at that moment and announced the information that the team really needed: "Gang! Details on why the 'Tim Sanders' side was in the system." Cragen walked over to join Elliot, Fin, and Munch, who were straightening up and getting ready to absorb the details.

"Turns out one of his sides tried to kill a mate, and failed. Alyssa Nicholson had filed a restraining order against an Emeril Parks, but it was lifted when they found no reason to continue because of Emeril's good behavior. The wife had a small concussion, but remembered that a man had pushed her down the stairs and say that she fell and that he would mourn. Turned out that shortly after the order was lifted, Emeril was long gone. Couldn't be found."

"Well, that's good," Elliot said. "Is Alyssa Nicholson still alive?"

"Yeah," Cragen said.

"Well then, let's go find her."

**RINGS**

Elliot and Fin walked up to the house they believed to be Alyssa Nicholson's house. It was an old house; broken shutters, shedding paint, apparently not-very-well-taken-care-of plants and all.

Elliot knocked on the door once they were past the metal stairs. The door opened after a couple slippered footsteps were heard.

"Yes?" asked a woman probably around her early forties.

"Yes, hi," Fin said. "Is your name Alyssa Nicholson?"

"Yes. Am I in trouble?" Alyssa asked, confused.

"No. I'm Detective Stabler, this is Detective Tutuola. We just want to ask a few questions." Elliot pulled out a picture of Mr. Multi-Husband and showed it to Alyssa. "Do you or did you know this man?"

"Yes. I did," Alyssa said, shuddering at the picture in front of her.

"What was his name?"

Alyssa breathed out her answer. She was shocked when her answer came out in a little quiver of a voice. "Emeril Parks. He tried to kill me."

**RINGS**

Alyssa walked over to her couch and sat down while she breathed, then continued. "I married him when it was barely legal for me. I was 19 then. He was 20. I was young and very inexperienced in good relationships. I had very few boyfriends in my teen years. We got married because I thought that we were a perfect couple. But I turned out to be absolutely wrong. One day, he pushed me down the stairs," Alyssa said, breathing a little easier now. "He had wanted to kill me. When I didn't die, he looked panicked. But then, a second later, those dark eyes full of hatred turned nice. He tried to help me up, but I wouldn't let that bastard touch me."

"Did you stay with him?" Fin asked.

"Of course not!" Alyssa said accusingly. "Why would I want to stay with him for another minute?? No. I quickly packed up my belongings and moved in with my mother again. Good thing I did. At my age, I don't know how long I would've been able to pay the mortgage. We would have been evicted in the next month."

"What happened after you left Parks?" Elliot asked, wanting to get back onto the important facts.

"I filed a restraining order. He was sending mail, calling our house, driving by each day before work, drove by my house each evening. It was scaring the shit out of my family. So I got the restraining order, and all his personal information was taken, but the order was lifted too quickly. Emeril can easily manipulate people who didn't know his true side. He acted all nice and caring, like he was innocent of everything I was accusing him of. The restraining order was lifted, and Emeril got everything he wanted. Again. But then later," Alyssa said to the detectives, "he stopped everything altogether. He didn't call our house; he didn't visit me or my mother. My conclusion was that he moved away. I was unbelievably relieved when I was able to convince myself this."

Alyssa stopped talking. She was done talking about Emeril Parks. Almost.

When Fin and Elliot stood to leave, Alyssa put up her hand to halt them.

"When you see him, tell him he's guilty," she said. "And he's caught." She didn't even look up.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Sorry this is kinda short. But did ya like the ending? *'tis the hint to make a review***

**Okay. How 'bout this: I get at least 10 reviews, and you guys get another chapter. Good?**

**-Chinagirl18**

**P.S. Happy (late) Martin Luther King Jr. Day!**


	8. Aliases and Victims Galore

**First off, I want to say thank you to everyone who has commented and put me in their favs or alerts. It means a ton. I like seeing that people like what I am writing. It encourages me to write even more, which is something that I love to do. :)**

**In this chapter, you will find names. Tons. It took me a little more than an hour to come up with all of these names. All the names and ages are different. All of the wives' names are different. The age part was not too complicated to come up with. It was just the names that took me forever. To find out more about these names and ages, keep reading. I know you want to. Enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: *points to self* I own nothing. *points to picture of Dick Wolfe by NBC logo on computer screen* SVU belongs to them.**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 8: Aliases and Victims Galore

"Scan the fingerprint you got again, but in different states," Cragen told Morales. "If we've only found three in New York, even if they're all pretty close to us, there's bound to be more aliases and victims around the country. If this killer had enough sense to clean the ring, then he's had practice perfecting it on others."

Morales nodded as Cragen walked out of the lab. He scanned the fingerprint again and made sure that its search for the match was around the country. Within ten seconds, names started popping up. More names than there should ever be.

Joshua Kurt, Emeril Parks, Brennan Gallagher, Matthew Reynolds.

Andy Martials, Garrett Carlson, Kenan Samuels, Ryan Anderson.

And yet, the names kept coming. It made Morales sick.

Michael Baxter, Brian Carrolls, Tim Sanders, Jack Dickinson.

Four more popped up.

Seth MacDonald, Mitchell Flynn, David Hallows, and last and unfortunately the most skilled; Randy Ruthman.

Morales started clicking on each name, starting at the top.

Joshua Kurt. 18 years old. Atlanta, Georgia. Married to Tiffany Adina Kurt.

Emeril Parks. 20 years old. Queens, New York. Married to Alyssa Parks.

Brennan Gallagher. 22 years old. Chicago, Illinois. Married to Jenna Pauley Gallagher

Morales stopped searching. This was a lot of information to take in, not to mention hard information. He told himself that he was going to make the detectives do most of the investigating. They were used to this kind of material. He wasn't.

**RINGS**

"Matthew Reynolds. 23 years old. Lived in Columbus, Ohio. Married to Nicole Spinyard," Elliot said, reading the information off of his computer screen. "Andy Martials. 24. Lived in Hauppauge, New York. Married Katie Towns."

"Garrett Carlson," Fin said. "26. Lived in Washington D.C. Married to Pam Williams. Kenan Samuels. 27 years old. Lived in San Francisco, California. Married Linda Tanner."

Munch's turn. "Ryan Anderson. 29 years old. Lived in Cincinnati, Ohio. Married Janet Burns." Munch paused. "This guy makes me sick," he stated.

Everyone obviously agree with him by detection of their face expressions.

"How many names can this guy legally get in one lifetime?" Fin asked. "'Cause this seems like way too many legal names already."

Everyone shrugged, then Elliot continued, "Michael Baxter. 31. Lived in Houston, Texas. Married Kim Ebers. Brian Carrolls. 32. Lived in Indianapolis, Indiana. Married Anita Potter."

"Next comes our close friend, Tim Sanders," said Munch. "34 years old. Lived in Seattle, Washington. Married to Emily Henderson. Jack Dickinson. 37. Lived in Norfolk, Virginia. Married Sara Laughlington."

Elliot sighed. He couldn't believe that a man would kill at least thirteen women. And it looked like he kept every single ring from every single wife.

"Seth MacDonald. 37. Lived in Baltimore, Maryland. Married Catherine Sanley. Mitchell Flynn. 39. Lived in Denver, Colorado. Married Melissa Daniels."

"David Hallows. 40. Lived in Anchorage, Alaska. Married Denise Summers."

"And your most recent killer, Randy Ruthman," Olivia said as she walked in through the open double doors.

"Liv!" Elliot said as he stood up.

"Hey, baby girl," Fin said, smiling.

"Hey guys." Olivia was smiling, even though she did not feel like it. "I'm back."

"Hey, Liv!" Munch said as he waved to her. "How was your case? Did it go well?"

"Yeah," Olivia lied.

"How did you know who our most recent killer was?" Fin asked.

"Got instant details the minute I walked in," Olivia said. "Well, after everyone welcomed me back."

"And it doesn't overwhelm you?" Elliot asked.

"Not really. It was just … sudden. It's nice to be back, though."

"We're glad to have you, Liv," Munch said.

Olivia smiled. "Thanks, John." She turned to face the others, ready to start work. "What are the details of the victim, murder, and murderer?"

"Correction," Munch said, holding up his hand. "That would be victims, murders, and murderers."

"Multiple? How many?" Olivia asked, bewildered.

"16 aliases, almost 15 victims," Fin said. "They all appear to be done by the same man with repeating M.O. He marries women, then kills them and takes their wedding rings."

"He should be around 5'6", 5'8". He's Caucasian, around 42 years old," Elliot filled in the information.

Olivia nodded. "Anything else?"

"The neighbor said something about smelling some kind of cologne when he bumped into her."

"Alright. Thanks for the fill-in, guys," Olivia said, sitting at her desk.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Thanks everyone, for reading. Sorry it's kinda short, but I was thinking that all of those names had to be absorbed for a while.**

**Hope ya liked it, and please comment or review, whatever you wanna call it. :)**

**-Chinagirl18**


	9. Plans

**Hey, guys! Sorry for the long intervals between my updates. Schoolwork and school and stuff. **

**Well, ignoring my excuses...Who saw Bedtime this past Wednesday?? Wasn't it good? Almost everyone I know were freaking out at the scene where Liv went undercover to catch that guy. But they were liking the Cynthia Hooper (a previous role in ER) vibe when MH was crying. I wouldn't know what they were talking about if I hadn't seen some scenes on YT. ****Thank you, YouTube! :D LOL**

**Anyway, I hope you all enjoy this chapter. It's...kind of longer.**

**Oh, and scoobfan93, what you wanted is coming up soon. :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything that Dick Wolf and NBC already own. :( Too bad.**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 9: Plans

3 Months Later

Everyone except for Olivia had left the precinct. She was catching up on some papers she still had to look over.

Then there were footsteps. She heard footsteps in the empty hallway.

When they stopped, she looked up...and smiled.

"You look beautiful tonight," a man said, smiling in the hallway.

Olivia laughed lightly. "You're kidding, right?"

The man smiled back. "It depends. Do you want me to be kidding, or do you want me to be telling truth, of which I believe?"

"I want you to be telling the truth, even if I do look gross right now. Lie to me whenever ya want," Olivia said, too tired to argue.

The man walked over to Olivia's desk and looked at her. "You looked exhausted. Do you need a ride? I'd be glad to give you one. No hassle."

"No thank you, Dan. I appreciate the offer, but I'll be good for tonight."

"Alright." He started walking out the doors to the hallway and the elevator when he paused. "Are we still on for the date tomorrow night?"

"Huh? What?" Olivia stuttered, obviously distracted.

"Date? Tomorrow?"

"Oh. Yeah. 7pm. Your place." Olivia smiled weakly. "See you then," she said as she waved Daniel out.

She sighed. She was so damn tired. She couldn't drive back to her apartment. Maybe she should have taken that lift home from Daniel. She is going to have to sleep in the cribs tonight, then sneak away to her apartment to get ready for her date.

She dropped everything in her hands and slinked her way into the cribs. She was out before she could count to ten.

**RINGS**

"Liv." That's the first thing she heard. "Liv," the voice repeated.

Olivia opened her eyes sleepily and looked at the person who insisted on her getting up. "Yeah, El."

"We got a lead on the Isabella Marcos case."

"Oh. Okay. I'll be right out." She waited until Elliot had closed the door to start to get up. She rubbed her temples, breathing deeply for a couple of seconds. She pushed herself to get up out of the cribs and walked over to get the well needed coffee.

Munch and his sarcasm greeted her as she reached her desk. "So, Sleeping Beauty. Did you get enough sleep last night?"

Olivia smiled weakly. "I slept a total of five hours."

"Get plenty of sleep tonight, then," Fin said as he patted her on the back as he walked by.

"Yeah." Olivia turned to Elliot. "So what was that lead you mentioned? About the Isabella Marcos case?"

"Grandma said she overheard a name while eavesdropping on the same phone line," Elliot said.

"Sneaky grandma," Munch stated.

Olivia ignored the comment. "Why didn't she report it before?"

"Scared to say anything. Didn't want to be wrong, give us a wrong lead."

Olivia sighed. "Okay. Let's go talk to her." She stood up, grabbed her coat, and walked out to the elevator. A second later, Elliot came to stand beside her. As the elevator doors opened, the two partners walked in, and Olivia spoke. "Elliot."

"Yes, Liv?"

"You're going to have to drive today. I'm too damn exhausted."

He laughed. "Alright, Liv. And get some extra sleep tonight."

"Yeah, yeah. I know." Olivia smiled slightly as they walked out the precinct doors.

**RINGS**

"And what happened after that, Mrs. Marcos?" Olivia asked the elderly lady.

"Well, after Isabella came in through the door, she walked to the kitchen. I assumed she locked the door after I heard her close it. She usually does, now that she's worried about this man she has been seeing recently. He's become abusive. He hits her over and over again when something doesn't go his way when he's in a bad mood. She's been able to cover up the marking on her that the man made with makeup, but she's realized that he's not going to stop being abusive. They were going to have their last date, unbeknownst to him, so Isabella could break it off with him, but then she was murdered."

"You said you had been listening in on some phone calls between your daughter and granddaughter," Elliot said. "Is there anything specific you had in mind?"

"Well, she said some things like, 'We have to stay away from this guy,' and 'He's starting to scare me. Bad. It's getting harder to hide what he does to me.' Right then, I knew that this man was seriously dangerous. Not the regular dangerous you would have in mind, but the kind of dangerous that even scares murderers."

"Did Isabella say anything else to her mother?" Olivia asked the elderly lady.

"Yes, but not important things. She was asking if she could move in with my daughter. She also asked if I could also come along. I have been living with her for the past three months. She says it's because I've become a little delirious, but it's really because I can't afford my own apartment."

Olivia gave Elliot an optimistic look. They both knew that they might not be able to trust exactly what this woman says if her own granddaughter says she's a little delirious. That would not work well in court.

"When Isabella was murdered, did you hear anything that could have been part of a struggle?" Elliot asked.

"Actually, yes. I did. But not anything too loud. Usually, after Bella closes the door, she locks it because I'm the only person that needs to be in the house, and I'm already inside. That's usually why, but because of her boyfriend, she's doing it more often. Anyway, after a couple minutes after she came in, I heard a small whisper of a yell of some sort. I think that whoever murdered my granddaughter picked the lock and came in quietly until Bella spotted him. I remember hearing a dull but sharp thud. I remember thinking that something had hit her on the head."

"And that turned out to be a flashlight from one of the kitchen drawers," Elliot stated.

"Yes. Then she was out. I thought I was going to be found out, too, so I hid in the bathroom, hoping that he wouldn't come upstairs to come and steal things. Thankfully, he didn't come anywhere near the stairs that go up. He rummaged around a bit more, then went back outside. I remember seeing ahead of black hair in a Mohawk type fashion, his hands were inside his coat, probably to hide his cold-blooded hands. He was looking around anxiously, making sure no one saw him leaving his soon-to-be crime scene. He looked almost exactly what her boyfriend looked like from the back.

Olivia nodded. "Thank you, Mrs. Marcos, for your time and details. They are very helpful."

Mrs. Marcos smiled and nodded. "Oh, any time, detectives. I'm pleased I could help. Please come back if you have any more questions."

"Thank you," Elliot returned. "We will."

Olivia and Elliot walked out of Mrs. Marcos's daughter's house feeling in a mood of successful discovery.

"Okay," Olivia said. "We have our eye-witness's observations. Shall we go get this suspect?"

"Yep. Let's go."

The two detectives got back into their car and began driving to Paul Terming's neighborhood to arrest the soon-to-be perp.

**RINGS**

Little did they know that someone was swiftly watching the way that Detective Olivia Benson walked to the vehicle, climbed in the passenger's seat, and how she had the expression on her face that said she was ready for a day's job to finish. This swift and skillful watcher, careful to stay unseen by passers-by, observed every movement, angle, and reaction of Ms. Benson.

He quickly wiped the drool that was gathering on the side of his mouth as he turned and snaked out of the two cars in front and back of him.

He couldn't wait for what was going to occur soon enough.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Did you guys like it? /:D I hope you did! Please review! I'm interested in what you think.**

**Thanks!**

**-Chinagirl18**

**P.S. Oh, and the name "Dan" did _not_ come from Dean. No way! It's just short from Daniel. I needed a name. Daniel came first, then Dan. :)**


	10. The Date and the Note

**Hey everyone! A updated another story of mine, so I thought, _Why not update Rings, too, since it's ready._ So, yep. Here it is. Hope you all enjoy it.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing related to SVU except for my thoughts, plots, and characters.**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 10: The Date and the Note

Olivia was finally getting ready for her date after finishing a tiring day.

They were not successful in finding Paul Terming earlier that day. He had apparently gone to an unknown place by the people who knew him. Unfortunately, he disappeared right when they needed him.

Olivia decided to leave her hair down and wear heels because she highly doubted that she was going to go chase a perp during her date. It was a nice difference from her everyday wear. It wasn't every day that she got o dress up for a special occasion.

She was almost finished with her hair when she heard a knock on her apartment door. Olivia wondered what the special occasion was for someone to come knocking on her door just minutes before her date was scheduled to arrive. Maybe it _was_ her date, coming early to have more "special time" with her.

She opened the door and looked outside, but saw no one waiting for her to sign for the dozen red roses waiting at the foot of her door. She picked them up and brought them inside her apartment, double-checking for the deliverer first.

When she put them down on the dining room table, she noticed a little baby blue colored card taped to one of the stems. She carefully took the card off of the stem, careful not to disturb any of the flowers, and read it.

It was written in a fancy writing all in capital letters.

_HELLO THERE, DETECTIVE. I'VE BEEN WATCHING YOU WITH MY BEST INTEREST. I CAN'T WAIT FOR OUR SPECIAL TIME TOGETHER THAT WE WILL EVENTUALLY HAVE. OH, MY PRECIOUS OLIVIA, WE WILL BE TOGETHER WHEN TIME ALLOWS, OR WHEN I MAKE IT HAPPEN. I WILL SEE YOU LATER, MY LOVE. {YOUR LOVE IN ANOTHER WORLD}_

When Olivia finished reading this she had goosebumps al along her arms and the hair on the back of her neck were standing up. She let go of the card and backed away from the flowers.

The knocks on the door startled her, and she jumped.

"Who is it?" Olivia asked from a distance.

The response made her ease a little. "It's Daniel."

Olivia slowly walked over to the door, looking through the peephole, and started breathing a little more easily. "Hi Dan," she said a little shakily a she opened her door.

"Good evening, Olivia." Dan paused. "You look beautiful. And you sound nervous. Is everything okay? Is something wrong?"

Olivia smiled slightly, not wanting their date to be ruined. "Nothing's wrong, Dan. It's okay." She closed the door behind her date and walked over to get some champagne. She grabbed two wine glasses and filled them up. She walked back over to where Dan was standing and gave him one. "Please, sit."

Dan did as he was told. "Are you sure you're okay?" he asked. "You still sound like something's bothering you. What happened? You know I'm not going to leave until you tell me what's wrong, right?"

Olivia sighed. "Yes, I know that. … A couple minutes before you got here, those roses over on that table were left at my door. I had a note. Hold on. I'll go get it." Olivia slowly got up and walked into her dining room and picked up the note that she had set on the counter after she was startled by Dan's arriving. She breathed deeply again and walked back to Dan, who looked concerned. She understood this. She knew that he cared for her and wanted her to be safe all the time. If she was harmed in any way, he would become very protective and shield and/or protect her from the person or thing that was attacking her.

Proof of this had happened just two weeks ago.

_Olivia and Dan had just eaten dinner and Olivia was standing outside waiting for Dan to finish paying the bill. She was just about to sit on the wooden bench that was there for those who were handicapped and others who needed a brief rest, when a drunk man came stumbling around the corner of the building. _

_He stopped and spotted Olivia, who was in a blue floral dress, and started howling like rude men do. He drunkenly walked towards her with his arms outstretched._

_"Wanna cum 'way with me pretty lady? I wan' you to cum with me an' we can have a really gu' time togetha'." This strange man was smiling with a drunken tinge to it, looking threatening. _

_Olivia quickly tensed up and started backing away, while the drunken man started walking towards her faster. Olivia kept backing up until she hit the brick wall behind her._

_"Uh, Dan?" Olivia called nervously. She glanced at the back door that she had come out of, which was to her right, about twenty feet away, hoping for someone to come outside and that she was being harassed by a drunken and potentially dangerous man. _

_The man came upon Olivia, who was trying to slowly inch her way alongside the wall to the door. But before he could get his hands anywhere near her, she grabbed his wrist, turned him around, and twisted his arm behind him. Boy, did she wish she had her handcuffs right now so she could cuff this bastard that was attacking her, drunk or not. _

_"Oh come on, baby," her attacker said, sounding pouty. "I just wanted to ha' some fun tonight."_

_Suddenly, the attacker gained back control by using his very unexpected strength to turn back around and push Olivia back against the wall, pinning her hands to her sides. She could smell the fresh booze coming from his breath, so she twisted her head away. She tried to tell him to stop, but the man started kissing her roughly, muffling her sounds._

_He put both of her wrists into his one large hand and used his other to slowly start slipping off one of her straps and down her shoulder._

_Olivia started screaming again when Dan finally appeared outside and saw his date in a scuffle. He ran over to Olivia and the man who was assaulting her and practically ripped him off of her and threw him to the ground. He tried getting up again, but Dan punched him in the face, forcing him down to the ground again._

_While Dan was making sure he stayed down, Olivia was busy pulling her strap back up onto her shoulder and straightening her dress so as not to reveal herself. _

_"Are you okay?" Dan asked, rushing over to her. "Did he hurt you?"_

_"No, no. I'm okay. He didn't hurt me," Olivia said reassuringly._

_"Good. I'm so glad that you're okay. I'm so sorry I couldn't be out here earlier to you wouldn't have had to go through that. I'm so so sorry, Liv." Dan started gently kissing Olivia first on her cheek, then moving to her lips, gently messaging her wrists where the drunken man had grasped her._

_"It's fine, Dan. Don't fuss about it."_

Because of Dan's protectiveness of her, Olivia found no foul in showing him the note. If anyone of suspicion even came within ten feet of Olivia, Dan would probably beat the crap out of him, wanting no harm to befall Olivia.

She held her breath as she watched Dan read the card to himself, his eyes widening as he read the last part of the card. "Your lover in another world? What is this creep talking about?" he asked disbelievingly. "Is there someone stalking you? Because it sure looks like it!"

"Yeah, apparently. I don't know where or when or why or who he is, but this card is scaring me."

Dan softly caressed Olivia's arms in an attempt to soothe her. "It's okay, Liv. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you. No one is going to hurt you."

"Thank you," Olivia said. "I'm sorry this turned out to be our date schedule. I didn't plan for it to be like this. I'm truly sorry."

"Oh, don't worry about it," Dan replied. "It's okay. You couldn't have known this was going to happen. It's not your fault."

Olivia smiled at her date. He was a very forgiving person, which made her mistakes a lot easier to get over. It happened slowly or quickly, but they were eventually resolved. "I'm just worried, Dan. I'm already thinking of getting a protective detail for myself," Olivia explained.

"That's good, Liv. I think you should get one. Just to be cautious. You can never be too careful."

After a couple minutes of silence and soothing, Dan spoke. "Would you like me to spend the night here with you?"

"Uh, sure. If you'd like."

"I would like to. I want to make sure you're safe. You never know how burglars or stalkers can get into someone's house. It's shocking how many ways have been invented."

Olivia just nodded at the information. She knew those facts were unfortunately very true. She had to admit; she did feel a little safer with a man around, more or less Daniel being the one with her.

"Alright," she said. "You can either sleep on the sofa, even though the couch is very uncomfortable, or you can sleep with me. Just stay above the covers. If you're cold, let me know and I'll get you some extra blankets."

Dan nodded with a small smile on his face. He was glad to be trusted. He loved her, and he was pretty sure that she loved him, just not in the most serious way at this stage of their relationship. Again, he understood that.

Olivia knew that Dan would want to sleep in her bed because of the comment she made about the sofa, and because she knew he loved her. They were lovers. She remembered back to Dean, who was her case agent while she was undercover in Oregon. She had minor feelings for him because of the compliments he gave her. Although, those comments came toughly towards the end of her experience with him. She wasn't too fond of him now. She had to give him credit, though. He made her realize that she hated working alone. But now she didn't have to.

After Olivia got into her pajamas and Dan stayed in his clothes, Olivia got into her bed and pulled the sheets over her. When she was about to turn out her bedside lamp, she saw Dan standing at the foot of the bed looking at her admiringly. He was making sure she got comfortable and was okay before he left.

She smiled. "Dan. What?"

"Oh, nothing. Just making sure you get comfy."

Olivia smirked. "No, I know you better than that."

For about five seconds, neither of them said anything. Olivia broke the silence. "You want to come in here, don't you?" she asked.

"No, no. I'll be fine on the couch. Which is very uncomfortable. And small. And very uncomfortable. And cold. And very uncomfortable." He paused.

She paused, looking at his expression, knowing that he wanted to continue ranting foolishly about how uncomfortable her couch was. Dan opened his mouth as if to say something, and Olivia raised her eyebrow, pressing him to go on.

"And it's very lonely out there on the small, cold, and very uncomfortable couch…without you," he finished smiling.

Olivia laughed. "Yeah, yeah. Alright. Go get your blankets and come in here. But remember: you are staying on top of the covers."

He smiled again, then went to go get the blankets he was given from the sofa. He returned and got into, or rather, onto Olivia bed and covered himself.

As they both turned out their lights, Olivia said, "You know, Dan. That last line you said to me was very cheesy."

He laughed. "I know. But it worked, didn't it?"

Olivia smiled. "Ah, whatever. Good night, Daniel."

"Good night, Liv," he returned. He fathered the sheets and covered himself, trying to feel warm. When he heard Olivia's light and easy breathing, he slowly scooted closer to her sleeping form, inch by inch, careful not to wake her. They were almost touching.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Hope y'all enjoyed the latest chapter of Rings!**

**-Chinagirl18**

**REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW**


	11. Protection

**I'm not quite toward the end with this story yet, but I had completely forgotten that I had this chapter ready, just needing to be typed up. 1st semester of high school is done, which includes finals. Yay!**

**R&R please!**

**Disclaimer: [look at previous chapters]**

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

Chapter 11: Protection

As Olivia was waking up to Daniel beside her, another woman was waking up beside the one she loved. But she did not know that that man did not love her as much now as he did when they had first met. And even though this description fits eerily the dilemma of Elliot and Kathy perfectly, this was not the couple described.

This, in fact, would be Paul Terming. He had slept with many women; raped some; killed a few; abused all. He had a cold heart; had no conscience. He did what he wanted, whenever he wanted, however he wanted. And today was going to be one of those exciting days.

He quietly snuck out of the bed and away from the young woman whom he had just made false love with. He went downstairs and grabbed a knife. He tucked it under the tablecloth of the dining room table in case the young woman came down to see what he was doing. He knew how to cook – he needed to know how to take care of himself when he was on the run - so he made a simple something for breakfast. Scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and orange juice created the classic Breakfast in Bed. As he made his way back to the stairs, he took the knife from under the tablecloth and held it between his fingers and the underside of the tray, making it unnoticeable to those who did not know it was there. She would have no idea of the protection that she would need.

"Hey, Steph," he said as he made his way into the bedroom. His "girlfriend" had woken, but stayed under the covers. A smile appeared on her face as soon as she saw the breakfast coming her way.

Paul smiled back. "I made breakfast for you this morning. I didn't think that you would want to get up on a Saturday morning."

Stephanie Jake blushed. "Aww. Thank you, Paul. And you're right; I didn't want to get up this morning. But as soon as I smelled that bacon coming from downstairs, my stomach was begging for it. If you hadn't come up, I would have gone down."

Paul Terming laughed lightly, having had munch practice in perfect lying. Now he could pull it off easily. His mate wouldn't even suspect anything.

_Well, except for that Isabella Marcos_, he thought. There he had made a mistake. He had let his anger and impatience seep through, causing Isabella to become of slight aware of his true nature. He suspected that their very next date would their last. Paul could not let that happen; he could not be dumped. He was the dumper – no – he was the killer of the relationship.

**RINGS**

"Okay," Olivia said breathlessly. "I have to get up and go to my job."

Daniel, still trying to catch his breath, smiled. "I know, I know." He let go of Olivia, who was in his arms.

Olivia slowly emerged from the bed and took her robe from her closet. As she walked into her bathroom, Dan was starting to rise out of bed. He yawned and stretched, not bothering to keep the blankets over the top half of his body. A couple of seconds after Olivia had turned the shower water on and climbed in, her phone rang. She didn't hear it, but Daniel did.

He reached over and grabbed the phone. "Hello?" he answered.

"Hello?" a male voice asked back. "Who's this?"

"This is Daniel," he said, interested in knowing who he was talking to. "And who is this I am speaking to?"

"Elliot. Elliot Stabler. Is Olivia there?"

Dan looked towards the closed bathroom door. "She is unavailable right now. May I take a message?"

Dan heard a pause from the other end of the line, then, "Could you just tell her to call back if she doesn't want to come to work, first?"

"Uh, sure. No problem."

The water stopped.

"'Kay. Thanks."

"You're welcome," replied Dan. He heard the click on the other end, then hung up himself.

Olivia opened the door and walked back into her bedroom. "Who was that?"

"No one," Dan said back.

"No, I heard you say something to someone. And I doubt it was your imaginary friend."

"Alright. You caught me. It was someone named…Elliot?" he falsely tried to recall. He knew full well who had called. He heard many a things about 'El' from Olivia. "Elliot Stabler?"

"Oh no. Did I miss something? Is something wrong? Do I need to call back?" Olivia kept asking. She was committed to her job.

"No, no," Dan said, lying. "He said that there were no cases today that he couldn't handle by himself and that you don't have to call back. He said you could just relax today. Everyone else has got everything under control." Dan loved lying, especially because he was getting very good at it. But now it was just a habit that he couldn't get rid of. He had loved confusing his women, telling them false details about something that they did not really need to know. He wanted them all to himself. Well…he did. In the past. He wanted to be committed to just one woman; one he really loved. No man could take her away from him. He could see Olivia hesitate.

"Um, maybe I should just call back to make sure that I don't need to bring something over to the precinct before I have my day off." She started walking towards the phone but Dan jumped up, blocking her path to the phone, stopping Olivia in her tracks.

"No. You don't need to do that. We can just hang around today, maybe watch some movies." He had come closer to Olivia, who had narrowed her eyes playfully at him.

"Really?" she asked, smiling.

"Yes, really," he said, gently pulling her to him. Their figures fit almost perfectly together as Olivia's wet hair fell, cool against her skin.

"You know," Olivia halfheartedly protested, "my hair is not going to look too pretty after this."

Dan laughed. "Don't be such a girl." He placed a passionate kiss right on her lips.

_This is the kind of protection that I need right now_, Olivia thought. _A loving and caring person that won't let me go. This is the kind of protection that everyone deserves. No one should be without it._

**RINGS**

Paul stood up, covered I blood and breathing hard. Stephanie Jake had been a fighter, but easy to overcome, nonetheless. He had first stabbed her in the back with the large knife, covering her mouth to block any sounds from traveling through the house and alerting the neighbors. While Paul turned her around, Stephanie started lashing out with her hands and her legs were flailing. She twisted and turned, but Paul regained control once had stabbed her near the chest from the front, but not before Stephanie had taken a good couple scrapes and scratches from her attacker. She had struggled for breath, but with the blood pouring out and the air rushing out of her, she had no chance.

Once Stephanie was dead and bleeding all over the bed and wooden floor, Paul was starting to get his adrenaline back under control. He smiled to himself, loving the burst of superiority that came along with his power. His pride didn't last long, though, for he heard police sirens racing towards Stephanie's house.

Paul's first thought was to get away from the crime scene; he wanted to continue his many rendezvous. But his second thought was to stay at the scene, get arrested, but leave the confessions for later. He wanted to see what ladies he could encompass that had power, too, but sure to have a little less than himself. He was looking forward to a challenge.

He looked outside the window. It was a crowded neighborhood and a few people could have had a view into the attack. They had probably called the police. He would have to go for them once he got out of jail.

Paul decided to commit to his second thought. He stood at the window, watching all the little uniformed people with large funs rush up to the house. He heard a loud crash which must have been the front door being hit down. He heard the men and women shouting their "Clear!" signals to teach other. He heard about five sets of booted feet come up the stairs and flood into the different rooms. In about two seconds, Paul had his hands in the surrender position, giving up the chance for a fight. He knelt down on the ground as two men came over, handcuffed him, then led him outside of the house and into the police car.

It was threatening to him. He knew what he was doing. He had plans.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Hope you liked it! Is finishing another one of my stories so I'll be able to work on this more over the break. **

**Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all! :D**

**-Chinagirl18**


	12. Confession Denied

**Okay, so I'm sure that all of you hate me...I haven't updated since...December 24 on any of my stories, and December 22 on _Rings_. Sooooooooooooooooooo sorry! Unfortunately, I'm just going to get more busy as the freshmen year of high school comes to an end...6 more weeks! :D And I just got some bad news today...not any health problems or anything, but one of my teachers is leaving...and probably won't come back until _at least_ about junior year, 2 years from now. It's depressing, and I don't like it.**

**Anyway, I hope you all read instead of mope around because I haven't updated in 4 months.**

**Disclaimer: I always dislike these...I don't own any SVU...Dick Wolf owns all. :(**

_**Last chapter, we ended with a man named Paul Terming, who had just finished killing a 'girlfriend', and the police were now storming the house. But Paul didn't run. He wanted to be caught for his own reasons...**_

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**Chapter 12: Confession Denied**

Paul Terming stopped; looked Olivia top to bottom. "You married?"

Olivia smiled. "And why would that be of interest to you?"

The perp leaned back into his chair. "No harm in knowing, right?" he asked.

"Well, yes. But no harm in NOT knowing, right?" Olivia answered slyly.

The smile on Paul's face disappeared, showing the real cruelness inside of him, dying to burst out. He still leaned back in his chair, though; made no attempt at making a charge at Olivia. She was not threatened, either. Why should she be? This amateur was not going to get anywhere near anyone he could hurt – not if she had anything to do with it.

"Are you wondering why you're here, Paul?" Elliot asked.

"Not really," he responded with a sick smile on his face. "I killed that woman…actually more than just her. A dozen? Maybe two?"

Elliot rushed up into his face. "You think you'll get away from this?" he asked angrily. "You never will. The innocent souls of those women will come back to haunt you."

Paul slammed his palms onto the table, stood up a little, but made no move to attack Elliot. "Well okay, then," he said fiercely. "Let them come racing at me. I don't care. In fact, when I see them I'll just remember what I did to them and feel great. I want them to come for me."

"You're a sick bastard, you know that, Terming?" Elliot said, narrowing his eyes.

Paul just smiled in return. He sat back in his chair. "Should I ask for a lawyer, or are you going to give up and just let me leave?" he finally said to the detectives. "'Cause you're getting nothing outta me."

Olivia and Elliot looked at each other, knowing that he wasn't going to let them dig any further.

Elliot looked back at Paul angrily. "Stay here."

At that, they headed out.

"Damn it," Elliot said under his breath."

Olivia nodded, hearing him. "We know what he did, he knows what he did, he CONFESSES what he did, but his lawyer will just argue 'not guilty by means of mental disease or defect'. There's not much use on trying to get anything out of him without his lawyer present. He's not going to do anything."

"Well, we can't give up," said Cragen. "Remember what we did with Gordon Rickett? Let's do it again. Take Mr. Terming to another room or cell – either is suitable for that scum – and make the interrogation room as uncomfortable as you can when he returns. And Olivia, he seems to be a wise man when it comes to women. Go in there by yourself and beat him at his own game. We'll be out here if you need anything. Hopefully, without another male in there, he's less threatened. He can be more of his sick self. But this time, keep him cuffed."

Both detectives nodded. Elliot went inside to get Paul while Olivia checked to make sure that there was an empty cell available.

"Get up," Elliot said.

Paul looked up at him. "Why?"

"Because."

Paul smiled. "Now, Detective. You know that answer never works. WHY?"

"Because I said so," Elliot said slowly but firmly.

Paul sneered, but obeyed. Elliot manhandled the jerk and, with Olivia's confirmation, showed him to a holding cell for a brief wait while he went back to help tweak some things in the interrogation room: uneven chair legs, heat increased, darker room; it was almost exactly how they had treated Gordon Rickett's room. Except this guy should be easier to crack than Rickett.

Cragen smiled to himself. "Good work, detectives," he said.

"Now it's time for Mr. Paul Terming to get uncomfortable," said Olivia as she smiled to herself. She was anxious for her interrogation with Paul. That prick needed to be taught a lesson. While Elliot went to go fetch Paul, Olivia explained to Cragen that she was going to do some riling up of the perp, avoiding getting too physical, but enough to heighten his temper. Cragen OK'd this tactic and Olivia went inside the room to wait for Paul to arrive.

"Here ya go, Paul," said Elliot coyly leading him into the readied interrogation room.

Paul grunted but didn't protest. He saw this female detective waiting for him. He knew he was going to have fun. He sat down calmly at the table, resting his cuffed hands in front of him.

Olivia stared at him until he started showing signs that he was uncomfortable. But that never happened. He stared back instead, almost making Olivia shift, uncomfortable herself. Thankfully, she was able to keep that reaction hidden. No satisfaction for this sicko was on the day's To-Do list.

When he shifted he heard the legs of the chair wobble underneath him. He looked down at the chair legs, wondering why it was wobbly now but now when he had first sat in it. He mistakenly let his confusion show.

"Are you comfortable, Paul?" asked Olivia. She continued on with the interrogation before the perp could answer the question.

Paul cleared his throat but said, "Completely."

Olivia and Elliot snicker to each other from opposite sides of the glass. They can see right through this guy. So instead of wasting time with pretending to be bothered about whether the nutcase was, in fact, comfortable or not, they went right into the interrogation process.

"You like raping women, don't you Paul?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Because I get to feel the power over them. They're weak little bitches."

"Why do you feel like you have to rape and kill them?"

"They ask for it, of course, each and every time. They taunt us all the time, waving their asses in our faces and dancing for us. It's all show for us. They want men."

"But not to force them to have sex and be killed."

"I disagree, Detective. Why would they torture us and tempt us with their bodies and actions if they didn't want to be screwed? Obviously, they ask for it every single day of their lives. They ALL do."

"No, Paul, they don't. No sensible person would want to be raped and stripped of their control over their own body. No one would ever wish for that in their right mind."

"If only you could ask my former girlfriends. They would tell you all about our perfect relationship and their fantasy rapes. We just turned it into a real rape, making it even better. It was exactly what they wanted, just real. So, in actual terms, they weren't actually raped." He smiled, smug.

"Oh, we would, Paul," said Olivia. "But there's a slight problem – we don't know who they are. Unless you'd like to give us their names. If you're as innocent as you say, then they should determine the jury's decision as easy as pi. Do you want to help your case and give us some names?"

Paul narrowed his eyes and stared at Olivia. "You know, you're pretty good lookin'. You have any fantasies you want to fulfill?"

Olivia smiled back. "You didn't answer the question, Paul. I guess I'll take that as a 'no'. You could've kept yourself out of jail by cooperating with us. Well, your loss." Olivia stood up and left Paul in his sulking position.

"There's your rapist," she said as she closed the door to the interrogation room.

"Good job, Olivia," said Cragen. "Let's get this story that this man – we won't get sued if we don't use names – has been caught for rape and murder. Hopefully more of his victims will stand up and say something now that the guy's off the streets."

Both of his detectives nodded. They walked out together while Cragen looked at Paul with fastidious eyes.

**SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU SVU**

**HAPPY EASTER! My school had a short week (4 days) and a long weekend ahead (4 days), then another short week (yep, 4 days again). Unfortunately, I have a couple big projects to do. So wish me luck! And enjoy your [soon to be] weekend! :D**

**-Chinagirl18**


End file.
